ISC2 CC Security Operations Practice Question
An organization needs to retain authentication logs for compliance with PCI DSS. What is the minimum retention period required, and how long must the logs be immediately available?
⚠ Common exam trap
CC often tests the exact PCI DSS retention numbers — candidates confuse the 12-month total retention with the 3-month immediate availability requirement, or pick a larger number thinking 'more is safer.'
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
12 months retention, 3 months immediately available
PCI DSS Requirement 10.7 mandates retaining audit logs for at least 12 months, with a minimum of the most recent 3 months immediately available for analysis. This ensures organizations can investigate recent incidents quickly while still having historical data for forensic and compliance reviews.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
18 months retention, 6 months immediately available
Why it's wrong here
PCI DSS requires 12 months of retention with the most recent 3 months immediately available, so 18/6 overstates both figures. It is tempting because longer retention sounds safer, and 12 months is often confused with the 18-month figure used in other frameworks.
- ✓
12 months retention, 3 months immediately available
Why this is correct
PCI DSS requires audit logs to be retained for at least 12 months, with the most recent three months immediately available for analysis. This satisfies both the retention and availability constraints stated in the scenario.
- ✗
6 months retention, 1 month immediately available
Why it's wrong here
PCI DSS mandates 12 months of audit log retention with the three most recent months immediately available for analysis, so both figures here fall short. Short retention is tempting because it reduces storage cost and exposure, but it fails the compliance requirement and would leave the organisation unable to reconstruct incidents.
- ✗
24 months retention, 12 months immediately available
Why it's wrong here
PCI DSS requires 12 months of retention with the most recent 3 months immediately available, so 24 months exceeds the minimum and 12 months available misstates the access window. Longer retention is tempting where internal policy or other regulations demand it, but it is not the PCI DSS baseline the question asks for.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Authentication and Authorization Methods
Key term
Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards
A set of security rules that any company that handles credit card payments must follow to protect cardholder data from theft and fraud.
Key term
Compliance
Compliance is the process of ensuring that an organization follows laws, regulations, standards, and internal policies that apply to its operations and data handling.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official ISC2 exam blueprint
This CC practice question is part of Courseiva's free ISC2 certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the CC exam.